


Vacation Gone Wrong

by Nocere



Series: Stingers and Fangs and Barbs, Oh My! [1]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Dialogue Heavy, Fluff, Gen, Hurt Peter, Hurt Peter Parker, Irondad, Parker Luck At It's Finest, Peter Parker Whump, Precious Peter Parker, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-09
Updated: 2020-07-25
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:00:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,559
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25156654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nocere/pseuds/Nocere
Summary: When Tony rewards Peter's straight A's with a trip to Malibu, California, he didn't know what he was getting into. He was expecting swimming, sunbathing, movies, junk food, and Hell, maybe even some sandcastles. What he did not expect was for their vacation to be ruined by a creature lurking below the surface of the Pacific Ocean.Disclaimer: All characters belong to Marvel and/or Sony. I do not give permission for this work to be published to any other sites.
Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Series: Stingers and Fangs and Barbs, Oh My! [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1822399
Comments: 19
Kudos: 103





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [WithACherryOnTop](https://archiveofourown.org/users/WithACherryOnTop/gifts).



> Hey everyone!
> 
> This is my first fanfiction, so please go easy on me. I have lots of ideas, and this silly little series is where I want to start. This first story is very fluffy and fun, with some whump of course. I hope you enjoy!

After his mansion was destroyed by terrorists, Tony never expected to return to Malibu. The memories of Obadiah Stane paralyzing him with his own tech to rip out his arc reactor, drunken birthday parties thrown while suffering from the effects of deadly palladium poisoning, nightmares of aliens and black holes in space, terrorists coming to… okay, yeah… lots of bad memories… kind of ruined Tony’s original love for the place.

But regardless of his own hesitations, Tony _did_ promise Peter a vacation to the destination of Peter’s choice, if he maintained straight A’s throughout his sophomore year at Midtown. Tony wasn’t surprised in the least when Peter arrived at the compound at the end of the school year with a megawatt smile, waving his report card around high in the air. What did surprise Tony, was Peter’s choice spot for a vacation.

Being a billionaire, Tony was ready to pay for a trip anywhere. A grand tour of Europe, the Amazon rainforest, the Great Wall of China, the Pyramids of Giza, anywhere the kid’s heart desired. But of course, Peter was very modest with his request:

“Malibu?”

“Yup!”

“Malibu, as in Malibu, California?”

“Yes!”

“‘Cause there are plenty of better places to spend your choice vacation. What about Paris? Amsterdam? Surely somewhere more fun than-”

“Mr. Stark, I want to go to Malibu, California as my reward, choice vacation. I don’t know how I can make myself any clearer.”

“Kid, why do you want to go to Malibu so bad?” 

“Because Mr. Stark, that’s where you lived! I want to check out all of your favorite restaurants. And I’ve never seen the Pacific Ocean before. Your first lab is there too. Maybe we could even build something while we were there. That would be so awesome! And I could do some friendly, tourist Spider-Man patrolling. And, we-”

“Alright, alright, kid. We can go to Malibu, but in case you forgot, my old mansion was decimated by some goons in helicopters. I rebuilt a smaller beach house on the property, but the lab is nothing but ruins now. Are you sure you still want to go there?"

While Peter’s face fell a bit at the mention of the ruined mansion and lab, it instantly lit back up. “I still want to go! We can just explore the ruins of your lab. It’ll still be fun. Plus, I think it’ll be great for you to share the distant stories of your youth with me.”

“Oh, so you think I’m that old? It was only a few years ago that I lived in Malibu, Pete.”

“Sure it was…” Peter said with an eyeroll.

“One more attack on my age, and the trip is off,” Tony good-naturedly warned with false sternness. In all honesty, it was rather endearing that Peter wanted to spend his vacation on Tony’s old property. _Who knows? Maybe this trip with the kid will finally give me some good memories of Malibu._

…

That’s how Tony found himself on his private jet with a rambunctious teenager, dropping down onto his personal helipad at 10880 Malibu Point, 90265. The jet had hardly landed, let alone killed its engine, before Peter was bounding down the stairs with his BFP suitcase.

Peter sat his luggage down at the foot of the jet’s staircase, and then stared in wonder at the vast Pacific Ocean. On top of a magnificent cliff, Peter could see the endless sea for miles. Directly across from Peter, a warm, orange sun was setting, causing the water to shimmer in shades of blue, purple, pink, and orange. Moderately sized waves with frothing, foamy white caps were wrestling through the water. A steady, distant crashing sound could be heard as the waves battered the cliff far below. With Peter’s enhanced senses, he could both taste and smell the saltwater. It was easily the most beautiful thing Peter had ever seen.

“Wow, Mr. Stark! This is so cool! I can’t believe you’ve stayed in New York so long. If I were you, I’d have come back to live here the first chance I got.”

“Yeah, it really is something,” Tony murmured with his hands in his pockets, coming to a stop right beside Peter, and admiring the view. Tony had forgotten how amazing it was to live right on the ocean, and Peter’s genuine reaction seemed to unlock Tony’s deep love for the Malibu coastline.

For what seemed like hours, but must’ve been minutes, they both silently watched the waves rhythmically roll in to pummel the cliff as the sun fully set. The ocean was now its nightly inky, dark blue color, and the first bright stars were slowly becoming visible on the horizon.

“So, uh, would you like to head to the beach house to unpack?” Tony hesitantly said, not wanting to rush Peter in any way.

Tony’s voice broke Peter’s trance, as he instantly spoke up, “Sure! And then we could explore your old lab.”

“I don’t know about that tonight, kid. It’s already getting dark out, and we’re certainly not exploring the ruins of my old lab in the dark. We can do that first thing tomorrow morning.”

While Peter had been dying to see the lab, he knew Tony was right, “Okay, but first thing tomorrow. After breakfast of course.”

“I can’t argue with that,” Tony chuckled, as they began walking from the cliff’s edge to the beach house.

The beach house Tony had designed was a complete downsize from his former mansion, but still clearly a luxurious, billionaire worthy vacation home. There were a few scattered palm trees surrounding a small, baby blue cottage with white shutters and trim. A short staircase led up to a covered porch with several creaky rocking chairs. There seemed to be more windows than siding, in order to let in as much of the beachside beauty as possible. After ascending the staircase, Tony inserted a key into the lock, and swung the door open.

As incredible as the exterior of the house was, it paled in comparison to the inside of the house. “Wow, Mr. Stark, it’s amazing! I can’t imagine how your mansion could be any better than this.”

“Yeah, it’s not too shabby. Would you like the grand tour?” Tony asked, knowing what Peter’s answer would be.

“Of course!”

“Well, here’s the living room area. The kitchen’s right across from it. Pepper said that an ‘open concept was crucial to beach house life’, whatever that means. Can’t say she’s wrong though.” And she wasn’t wrong.

There was a massive wraparound couch, with more pillows than Peter and May had in their entire apartment, that surrounded a surfboard coffee table. The couch also happened to face one of the largest flat screen's Peter had ever seen. Overhead, a ceiling fan spun lazily. Light wooden floors carried from the living room to the kitchen, where Peter could already see all of the latest, stainless steel kitchen appliances. A breakfast bar with wooden stools was also visible. The interior of the house maintained its color theme of blue and white. Peter couldn’t wait to see the rest of the house.

“Mr. Stark, we _have_ to watch a movie on that screen. And that couch looks comfortable. Is there a tv like that in my room? What movies do you have here? Do you have any Star Wars movies? Peter questioned, rapid-fire.

“Slow down there, Pete, we can watch any movie you want, and you’ll only find out about a tv in your room if you follow me,” Tony was already heading down a hallway, beckoning Peter.

Up high along the hallway, there were shelves lined with tiny wooden ship models, as well as several lighthouse paintings. At the end of the hallway, two doors directly across from one another came into view. Both were adorned with little decorative anchors.

“Here’s the guest room,” Tony announced while opening the door on the right, “which is where you’ll be staying.”

Upon entering, the first thing Peter noticed was a rustic ship wheel chandelier at the center of the ceiling. He was thrilled to see that there was indeed a TV in his room. Though it was not as large as the flat screen in the living room, it was easily bigger than the one in his and May’s living room! A large window gave an amazing view of the sea, and a small nightstand with a coral reef lamp was located right next to the king sized bed.

“I can’t sleep on a bed that big! I’ll get lost in it!”

Tony laughed, “You’ll get used to it. Surely it beats that twin sized bed you somehow manage to sleep in?”

“Well, obviously. I’ve just never slept in anything like this,” Peter said while plopping down on the bed, running his hands over the navy blue duvet, “It’s _so_ soft.”

“Alright, alright, why don’t you get unpacked, and then meet me in the living area for a movie. I’ve got a film I know you’ll love,” Mr. Stark dismissed himself.

Peter began unpacking his clothes and swimming trunks into his room’s walk-in closet. Eventually, he came across his hygiene products, and opened the door to what he assumed was an en-suite bathroom.

“Woah! That’s awesome!” Peter announced to no one, while taking in a full sized bathroom. There was plenty of counter space where he haphazardly laid his stuff while staring at the jacuzzi. There wasn’t a bathtub in his room back home, only a tiny shower that he could hardly stand fully upright in without hitting his head on the tiny showerhead. He _had_ to try out that jacuzzi.

Not wanting to keep Tony waiting too long, Peter settled for taking a quick shower in his bathroom. The water pressure was amazing, and the temperature was as hot as Peter dared. By the end of his shower, there was steam billowing throughout the entire bathroom. Peter quickly dried off and put on his comfortable sleepwear, and then made his way back to the living area.

Walking down the hallway, he instantly recognized the aroma of pizza. Sure enough, upon entering the living room, he saw a stack of several pizza boxes on the breakfast bar. Tony, who had been microwaving a bag of popcorn, instantly turned to greet Peter.

“Hey, kid, I got some pizza while you were in your room. Take however much you want, there’s plenty,” Tony said as Peter grabbed a plate.

Peter didn’t want to appear greedy, but he knew his metabolism was nothing to be messed around with. He settled for three slices of cheese, two slices of pepperoni, and five slices of Hawaiian pizza, his favorite. Pineapple on pizza was delicious! It was sweet and savory, the best of both worlds.

Tony was already on the couch with a massive bowl of popcorn in his hands, and his modest plate of two slices of supreme pizza. “C’mon, kid, the movie’s about to start.”

Peter hunkered down at the right end of the couch, directly next to Tony. He was half-way through his final slice of cheese pizza when he heard the famous music.

“Mr. Stark,” he groaned, “we are _not_ watching _Jaws_. You’re gonna make me scared to swim tomorrow.”

“That’s the idea. I don’t need a reckless Spider-Ling trying to swim out as far as he can, or hold his breath for as long as possible, or any other stupid thing you could come up with while you’re out in the ocean. Maybe this will scare you into being a little safer tomorrow. Plus, John Williams does the music in it. You like that guy. He does your silly Star Wars movies’ music,” Tony informed, eyes never leaving the screen.

“I’m not gonna do anything stupid Mr. Stark. I’ll do anything any normal person would do when swimming in the Pacific Ocean for the first time… There aren’t too many sharks here around California though… right?” Peter asked hesitantly. Now he was nervous.

“Not too many, kid. You wanna worry more about the stingrays.”

“Stingrays?”

“Yeah, just kind of shuffle your feet around tomorrow. You’ll be fine. You’ve got that sixth sense thing going for you too. What is it… your Peter Tingle.” Tony said through a mouthful of pizza, dodging the handful of popcorn Peter launched at him.

“Do _not_ call it that! You’re as bad as May.” Peter whined.

“Alright, kid, I won’t call it that… to your face. Now zip it and watch the movie. We’re coming up on some action.”

Peter rested back against the couch. He’d never seen _Jaws_ before, and it was honestly pretty unsettling, considering he was going swimming tomorrow. After the movie was over, and with the minimal amount of covering his eyes, he went after Tony.

“Why would you make me watch something like that before I go swimming tomorrow?”

Tony just laughed, “Did you like it? What’d you think of the floating head? The severed leg? Quint’s demise?”

“Stop talking about it you jerk,” Peter laughed good-naturedly. It had been a pretty cool film, “It’s your own fault I’m not gonna be able to sleep tonight.”

“Don’t worry Pete, it’s just a movie,” Tony comforted in a condescending tone, as if he were talking to a toddler.

“Whatever, old man. I’m going to bed, and then I’m going swimming _all day tomorrow_. I’m Spider-Man, so no demon shark is going to scare me.” Peter bragged while taking the plates and empty popcorn bowl to the kitchen sink area.

“That’s some big talk, kid. We’ll see about that tomorrow.”

“I guess we will,” Peter retorted while heading to his room. He stopped in the hallway, and lowered his voice, “In all honesty though, goodnight Mr. Stark. Thanks for taking me on this vacation. I’m having a lot of fun, and I can’t wait for tomorrow.”

Tony cleared his throat, not used to the shift from humor to real emotion, “No problem, Peter. Goodnight, I’ll see you in the morning.”

After hearing Peter’s room door click, Tony went about putting the remaining pizza away in the refrigerator and turning off the flat screen, before heading to his own room for some much needed rest. Tomorrow was sure to be an exhausting, but fun-filled day of babysitting the Spider-Ling.

…

Peter had always been a morning person, or so he thought. Maybe that was due to the fact that he was sleeping in a bed that just barely contained his entire frame, because after spending the night on a king mattress, Peter could not find the will to crawl out of bed. He’d never had a more fitful sleep. Only when Tony quietly opened the door to call him into the kitchen for breakfast did he fully wake up.

“Peter, I got us some breakfast.” Tony’s announcement was met with a groan from Peter, “C’mon, you can’t sleep the whole day away.”

“Watch me, Mr. Stark,” Peter mumbled, his eyes still closed and sprawled out on his stomach.

“Well, that’s too bad. I’ll have to eat all of these donuts-” Before Tony could finish his sentence, Peter was up and moving.

“You got donuts for breakfast? Those are the first words that should’ve come out of your mouth.” Peter lectured Tony while following him into the kitchen.

At the breakfast bar, Peter could already see two large, orange boxes with the words “Randy’s Donuts” written in white font. Upon opening the first box, Peter spotted a half dozen old fashioned sour cream donuts, and a half dozen blueberry cake donuts. Peter was pleasantly surprised that Tony had remembered his favorite flavors the last time Peter ate breakfast at the compound. The second box contained a pair of glazed, raised donuts, and a bunch of Avengers themed donuts! There were little donut faces of Iron Man, the Hulk, Thor, Black Widow, Hawkeye, Captain America, and…

“A Spider-Man donut! That’s so awesome!” Peter instantly lunged for the Spider-Man donut and took a bite out of one of the lenses. It was delicious, and better yet, it was filled with strawberry jam.

“You’ve got to try this Mr. Stark, it’s delicious,” Peter held out his half eaten, Spider-Donut to Tony.

“No thanks, kid. It looks a little messy. I’ll stick to my glazed and Iron Man donuts. If you really like them though, feel free to eat Captain America’s donut. It’s blueberry filled,” Tony began dunking his donuts into a mug of coffee.

After several minutes of coffee drinking and donut consumption, Peter brought up the question of what they planned to do for the day.

“Well, given that you just ate enough donuts to feed Thor, I say that we wait at least a few hours before we try to go swimming. We can go explore the lab if you want. Or, we can always watch _Jaws 2_ ,” Tony joked, knowing what Peter’s answer would be.

“Let’s go explore the lab!”

“We can do that, but make sure you’re wearing some good shoes, not flip flops or crocs or whatever your generation wears. I don’t want to be pulling any nails out of your feet on this vacation.”

Peter scoffed, “I don’t wear crocs Mr. Stark, or flip flops. I’d rather be barefoot than wear any open toed shoes. But you don’t have to worry about me, I packed some tennis shoes."

“Somehow I doubt tennis shoes will save you from nails, but I guess it’s better than nothing. Maybe I ought to go out and buy you some work boots, and a helmet, and some bubble wrap.”

"Mr. Stark,” Peter whined, “C’mon. It’ll be fine. I’ll be perfectly safe and I’ll actually listen to you… for once.”

“That’s real reassuring kid,” Tony sighed, “alright, go get dressed and we’ll head out.”

Peter shouted a victorious “Yes!”, and then ran back to his room. Tony followed Peter down the hall, at a walking pace, and then branched off into his own room to change clothes. Tony emerged several minutes later to see Peter, bouncing on his heels in anticipation.

“Finally! Let’s go!” Peter headed out the door. Tony right behind him.

The lab was located a couple hundred feet away from the beach house. Tony had wanted to make sure the house was built far enough away from the unstable ground his old mansion had stood on. Tony could still barely see it from the front door, and he laughed as Peter began walking in the entirely wrong direction.

“Why don’t you let me lead, kid, since I’m the one who actually knows where to go,” Tony joked.

Peter blushed, embarrassed, but then smiled as he began following Mr. Stark to the ruins. They soon came across the remaining foundation of the mansion, and Tony warned Peter to stay away from the edge, lest Peter fall down into the ocean.

“Well kid, this is it. The remains of my once beloved lab,” Tony made a grand gesture to the foundation below. “It’s really not much to see anymore, in fact, I think even more of it has eroded into the ocean.”

“It’s so cool Mr. Stark,” Peter exclaimed over the roaring of the waves below, “You made your Mark II suit down there?”

“Sure did, among about 30 other marks. I wish you could’ve seen it, you know, before it got blown up. There was all kinds of stuff, Pete.” Tony trailed off.

“Like what?” Peter asked, encouraging Tony to share more of his past.

“Oh, you know, nothing better than what we’ve got at the compound, but interesting stuff. I had the typical holograms and tools and such, but there were also these cases for all of my suits, and a garage full of all kinds of cars. I actually crashed down into my ‘67 Shelby Cobra the first time I flew the suit.” Tony chuckled fondly at the memory that had not been so funny at the time.

“Maybe we could check to see if any of your old cars are still down there?” Peter wandered closer to the edge, but Tony was quick to gently grab hold of his arm.

“I don’t think so Pete. I really don’t want you falling or getting hurt, why don’t we just head back, get changed, and hit the beach, huh? That’ll be a lot more fun than looking for old dusty cards or lab equipment. Besides, I’m sure some crazy fans of mine have already looted the place. Not that I left much behind for them to take in the first place.”

Peter sighed, taking in one last look of Tony’s lab, “Okay, I’m ready to check out the beach.”

The two slowly turned from the edge of the cliffside and headed back to the beach house, leaving Tony’s old lab below.

...

Upon returning to the house, Peter and Tony both disappeared into their rooms to change into their swimming trunks. Peter finished in about a fraction of the time, and was once again bouncing on his heels at the door with a towel in hand when Tony emerged with a towel and large beach bag. While Peter wore nothing but black swimming trunks, Tony wore both swimming trunks and an under armour t-shirt to hide the large scar from his arc reactor.

“Did you put on sunscreen?”

“Of course I did!”

“Peter, there’s no way you had enough time to put on sunscreen. Now put some on and we can be on our way,” Tony handed Peter a large bottle of sunscreen.

Peter quickly slapped the sunscreen all over his body, haphazardly rubbing it into his skin. “Okay, can we go now?”

Tony laughed at Peter’s theatrics, and then followed Peter, who was already heading out the door. They both descended the cliffside and quickly reached the sand below, Peter talking Tony’s ear off the whole way.

“So, Mr. Stark what should we do first?” Peter asked while lying his towel out flat on the beach.

“Whatever you want to do kid. We could swim, or correction, you could swim while I watch from the beach and get gorgeously tan. Or you could go collect some seashells for Pepper. She loves sand dollars. Or you could build a sandcastle.”

“Mr. Stark, sandcastles are for babies,” Peter said with an eye roll.

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that, Pete, “Tony began dumping out his beach bag, revealing some unusual contents, “What do you think, Pete? I’m sure two geniuses could make a pretty wicked castle with proper tools.”

Peter’s face lit up at the sight of so many different tools. He and Tony began sorting out several different cylindrical and rectangular tubs, funnels, spackle knives, trowels, and even a screwdriver. Peter was already coming up with limitless ideas in his head. Who knew sand castles could be so cool?

The makeshift architects began building a replication of the Avengers compound right at the shore. As time passed and the compound became closer and closer to being finished, the tide came closer and closer as well.

“NO!” Peter cried as the western wing of the compound crumbled beneath the waves, “That’s where my room was gonna be,” Peter pouted.

“I guess that’s the ocean cueing you to get in,” Tony smiled.

“I guess so,” Peter laughed good naturedly, but hesitated, “There really aren’t any sharks in there, right?”

“Nah, I’m sure we scared them all off by now.”

When Tony noticed Peter’s lingering hesitations, he started wading out into the ocean water.

“See, kid? There’s nothing to be afraid o-” Tony was cut off, and disappeared under the waves.

“Mr. Stark!” Peter screamed while jumping into the ocean, swimming out to where he’d seen Tony go under, “Mr. Stark? Where are you? What happened? Tony? AHH!” Peter felt something grab his leg, only to see Tony pop up beside him, laughing his ass off.

Once Peter’s heart restarted and he could breathe, he immediately launched himself at Tony.

“How could you do that? I thought some giant shark had gotten you! You’re sick, Mr. Stark!” Peter began splashing waves at Mr. Stark, who was still in the midst of a laughing fit and only half heartedly deflecting Peter’s attack.

The two chased each other around in the waves for over an hour. Peter was determined to get back at Tony for his mean trick! They eventually called for a truce after Peter succeeded at getting enough saltwater up Tony’s nose to have him spluttering. Both of them were laughing and having such a great time as they wandered back to shore, that neither one noticed the dangerous creature lurking in the sand below their feet.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back again! I hope you guys enjoy the chapter.

About halfway to their spot on the beach, Peter split off from Tony and began tramping through the shallows along the shoreline. He was trying to find some sand dollars for Pepper, knowing those were her favorites.

“Don’t wander too far, Pete. It’s about time we get some more sunscreen and maybe a bite to eat,” Tony paused, waiting for Peter.

“I know, Mr. Stark. I’m just trying to find some seashells for Pepper,” Peter responded distractedly, shifting his feet through the sand, “Why don’t you go get us some leftover pizza set out, and I’ll be back up at the house soon?”

“Absolutely _not_ , Spider-Boy. I’m not leaving you down here alone on the beach. Who knows what kind of trouble you’d get into. Now c’mon. Let’s get some lunch, and then we can find a gift for Pepper,” Tony was already stepping out of the ocean.

Peter started running back through the water towards Tony. His choppy steps causing clouds of sand to billow out beneath his feet, disrupting the sea life. He was nearing the shore when his spider sense suddenly pinged at the back of his neck. Peter instantly came to a halt, and was in the process of trying to locate any kind of Stephen-Spielberg-25-foot-mechanical-shark-like threat when he suddenly felt an excruciating pain shooting from the inner portion of his right heel.

Peter let out a yell and instantly brought his foot up out of the water, prepared to see nothing but a stump left. What he saw instead, was a large barb protruding from his foot. The excruciating pain he had initially felt was now throbbing with his rapidly increasing heartbeat.

_“Mr. Stark, help!”_

“Yeah, yeah, kid. I’m sorry for scaring you earlier. I thought we’d called it a truce?” Tony turned to roll his eyes at Peter’s antics, but instantly sobered when he saw Peter was in fact in distress.

“Peter? What happened? What’s wrong?” Tony was running towards Peter.

“I-I don’t know. I was just coming over to you, m-my spider sense went off, and I just got stung or b-bit by something,” Peter was breathing heavy, still clutching his foot.

“Here, let me see,” Tony began prying Peter’s hands away from the wound, not exactly knowing what to expect, _"_ _Shit,_ kid! There’s a stingray barb stuck in your foot!”

“Well, what’s that m-mean?” Peter’s voice rose in pitch as both his panic and pain continued to grow. Sensing Peter’s fear, Tony forced himself to take a deep breath and calm down. Him freaking out certainly wasn’t going to help his kid.

“It’s fine. It’s no big deal. It happens to tons of people every year. It’s just a little barb from a stingray. We’ll get it out in no time and you’ll be back to hunting seashells,” Tony glanced around, cursing under his breath when he realized that nobody was around to help them. That was one of the few downsides to basically owning a beach.

It’s not like Peter could afford anyone’s help anyway. The only medical personnel who knew he was Spider-Man was Dr. Helen Cho, and even she had to sign an NDA. Peter certainly didn’t want to risk blowing his cover over an embarrassing incident like this. Regardless, Peter was really wanting to get the barb out soon.

“Can you please h-hurry, Mr. Stark? This _really_ hurts,” Peter whimpered.

While Peter’s pained tone struck its own barb through Tony’s heart, he knew that there were certain protocols to a wound like Peter’s. “I can’t take the barb out yet, Pete. You’re supposed to clean the wound with fresh water first. Do you think you can make it up to the house?” Tony doubted his own question.

“I don’t k-know if I can, Mr. Stark. I’ll try,” Peter took some deep breaths and wrapped his arm around Tony’s shoulders. Peter managed to limp his way out of the water, but the stinging sensation was only getting worse. Tony immediately saw that this wasn’t going to work.

“I knew I should’ve brought my nanotech,” Tony huffed out, while gently lowering Peter to a lying position on the ground, “Alright, here’s the plan. I’ll head up there and grab something to carry you on. We’ll get you up to the house and taken care of. Does that sound alright? Will you be okay down here on your own? It’ll only be for a few minutes.”

Peter was breathing through clenched teeth at this point, but he didn’t want to cause Tony any additional worry, “I’ll be fine. J-Just go,” Peter gasped out, watching as Tony gave one last nod before beginning to jog up the cliffside. The whole process looked very daunting to Peter, and the burning in his heel was only getting worse.

...

Tony barged through the door, his breathing labored. His eyes darted around, trying to find something, anything that could help him get Peter up into the house. His gaze stopped on the surfboard coffee table. “That’ll have to do,” Tony strode over to the coffee table.

He was already winded from jogging up from the beach, but he knew he couldn’t let Peter down. He began prying at the groaning wooden frame of the table until he heard a satisfying snap, the force of it sending him sprawling backwards. Tony gathered up the surfboard and headed back down to Peter. “I swear, the next beach house I build won’t be on some _goddamn_ cliff,” Tony muttered to himself.

…

After Tony had left, Peter had nothing to distract himself with. All he could think about was the sting that was radiating throughout his foot. It’s not like it was the worst pain he’d ever felt. He was Spider-Man after all; injuries were a part of the job description. It was more of the shock of getting hurt while out vacationing with Tony that had Peter in such a frenzy.

Eventually, Peter gathered the courage to sit up and inspect the wound again. A wave of both dizziness and nausea crashed over him as he saw the barb. It looked to be only about a half inch long sticking out of his foot, but who knew how far into his foot it was. Blood was oozing out from beneath the barb as well, covering his foot in streaks of red. Peter was spared from focusing on it any longer when he spotted Tony carrying a surfboard.

“W-Where’d you get that?” Peter stuttered.

Tony placed the surfboard down parallel to Peter, “I just did a little remodeling in the living room. No biggie. Do you think you can hold onto, or stick, to this?”

Peter eyed the surfboard carefully. It looked easy enough, as long as he kept his bad leg completely propped on it. He didn’t want to be dragging his foot behind him for the entire trip to the house. “Yeah, j-just give me a hand.”

Together they managed to get Peter stomach-down onto the surfboard with a minimal amount of added discomfort. Peter let his left foot hang off the surfboard, but kept his injured leg tucked up beside him. It was far from comfortable, but Peter knew it was their only real option.

“Okay, kid. I’m gonna try and pull you up to the house. I’ll go as fast as I can, but unfortunately, I’m not as young as I used to be. Just try to stick to the surface, and this’ll be over with in no time,” Tony hoisted the front of the surfboard up and began walking backwards up the precipice, and Peter diligently stuck to the surface.

“Does it seem to be working alright?” Tony grunted out after a few steps.

“Y-Yeah. It’s fine,” Peter’s voice wavered. He was beginning to feel lightheaded, but he was trying to stay strong for Tony.

...

Tony was already exhausted, and he knew there was still a ways to go. His shoulders and back were going to be giving him Hell tomorrow morning, but he refused to take any breaks. Peter was suffering enough as it was, and every accidental bump Tony hit was met with a muffled groan from Peter. Tony could see him white-knuckling the surfboard, and it only encouraged him to move faster.

Slowly, but surely, they made it to the clifftop. Tony’s muscles were trembling, and he was panting from his efforts, but they were finally back at the house. Tony laid the surfboard down at the foot of the porch staircase as gently as he could, thankful to see Peter still conscious as he raised his head weakly.

“Kid, I’ll have to help you limp up the steps. There’s no way I can carry you up,” Tony’s comment was met with Peter dropping his head back down onto the surfboard and moaning.

“C’mon, Peter. I just need you to get up the stairs and on the couch. That’s all you have to do. Please, buddy, it’s gonna get better really soon. I promise. We’ve just got to get to the couch. I know you can do it. It’s just a few steps. C’mon,” Tony coaxed Peter while maneuvering him into a sitting position.

Peter seemed to perk up at Tony’s encouragement, and he locked arms with Tony to raise himself into a standing position. Peter had to gain his bearings for a minute after the change in height, but after everything stopped spinning, he and Tony faced the staircase.

“Okay, we’ll just go up one step at a time. I’m not trying to rush you. Do what you’ve gotta do, but the sooner we get inside, the sooner we get that barb taken care of,” Tony advised.

Peter nodded his head and took the deepest breaths he could manage, then proceeded to hop up one of the stairs. He clenched his jaw as the small movement resulted in a flare of pain, but he instantly hopped up onto the next step without giving himself too much time to process the pain. It was only eight short steps, but it felt like Mount Everest to Peter. After he’d scaled the last one, he slumped against the doorway, breathing heavily with sweat cascading down his face.

Tony turned the doorknob and bumped it in with his hip, hauling Peter in behind him. Miraculously, they made it the couch without Peter tripping over any of the leftover surfboard coffee table debris.

“Oh…so this is what you meant…w-when you said y-you’d…remodeled,” Peter gasped out to Tony, trying to keep his thoughts unclouded. It had been over twenty minutes since he’d been stung, and he had yet to receive any kind of treatment. While the pain was thankfully remaining concentrated at his foot, it’s throbbing had increased, as had its burning sensation.

Tony was already in the kitchen, rummaging through his cabinets and knocking out all kinds of tupperware.

“W-Whatcha doing Mr. Stark?” Peter's confused tone concerned Tony, urging him to move faster.

“I’m just trying to find a pitcher and something that you can soak your wound in. Perfect!” Tony snatched a plastic pitcher from the cabinet and grabbed the giant bowl they’d used for popcorn last night from the countertop. _Goddamn it! Why didn’t I wash that last night?_

Tony filled the pitcher up with cold tap water, and then switched the faucet over to hot water as he moved back over to the couch. Peter was curled up with a pillow clutched to his chest. His teeth were clenched and his face was twisted into a grimace.

“Alright, Pete, listen to me real quick,” Tony waited for Peter to open his eyes and find him, “I’m gonna pour this over your foot to get rid of any salt and sand, okay?”

Peter nodded along, although Tony doubted he was really processing what was being said. Tony started pouring the water over Peter’s wound, carefully removing any salt, sand, blood or other debris. Peter instantly hissed in a breath and tensed up, but he didn’t try to pull his foot away.

“Very good, Pete, just a bit more,” Tony concentrated on his task, happy to get rid of the blatant red streaks of blood. Tony deemed the task done once he saw nothing but pink, watery streaks stemming from the wound, and he tossed the pitcher aside.

Tony hurried back over to the kitchen sink, where the faucet was now emitting steaming water. He grabbed the popcorn bowl and attempted to wash out the stray pieces of burnt popcorn and kernels leftover from last night before filling the bowl up with the hot water.

Tony shuffled back to Peter, trying his best not to slosh the water all over himself or the floor. Peter already looked more alert, as the initial rinse off of the wound had aided in diminishing the pain.

“What’s that for?” Peter was trying to stay in the loop.

“This is going to take most of the pain away. It’s pretty hot, but we’re just going to soak the wound in it. Go ahead and turn over onto your back. You can kind of drape your foot off of the couch, into the bowl,” Tony began helping Peter turn over.

“But w-what about the barb?” Peter asked, once he was situated.

“Well, hopefully after soaking it in hot water, it’ll soften up and be easier to pull out,” Peter winced at Tony’s description, not looking forward to pulling the barb from his already tender wound.

Tony slowly began lowering Peter’s foot into the water, but Peter instantly drew away when the water hit his wound.

“Tony, that’s b-boiling!” Peter yelped, pulling his foot away from Tony.

“No it’s not. C’mon, Pete. You know I’d never do something to hurt you. Just bear with it for a second and the pain will be gone.”

With a relinquished sigh, Peter allowed Tony to once again bring Peter’s foot back down into the water. Peter tensed up and began sucking in quick breaths through his teeth. The steaming water only seemed to add more pain to his already burning injury. Peter tried to keep it together for Tony’s sake, but Peter couldn’t help his muscles’ involuntary twitching.

Just as Peter was nearing the end of his rope, and was about to tell Tony that the water wasn’t working, the pain began to ease. What was once a harsh, burning throb was now ebbing into a manageable ache. Peter was finally able to relax.

Tony noticed Peter’s shift in demeanor, “Is it getting better?”

Peter merely nodded his head, closed his eyes, and then proceeded to melt into the couch, all of his muscles finally loosening. Tony sighed, relieved to see that Peter’s pain was leaving. For a minute, the two sat in silence, Tony listening to Peter’s breaths even out.

Tony did a quick sweep of his surroundings, and quickly noticed that there were puddles of water all over the floor and the couch. Not wanting to disturb Peter, Tony quietly rose from his crouched position and headed over to a linen closet to grab several towels. He draped them on the floor starting at the entryway and ending at the couch, trying to sop up the water. He then walked down the hallway towards his master bathroom. Inside, he sorted through his medicine cabinet, looking for a pair of tweezers.

Once he found the tool he needed, he grabbed a small hand towel and went back to Peter, who looked to be resting comfortably on the couch.

Tony felt bad for disturbing him, but he knew that they couldn’t just leave the barb inside. It was likely still releasing venom into Peter’s body, which would only prolong his suffering.

“Hey,” Tony began gently, not wanting to startle Peter. He waited patiently, crouched beside the couch, for Peter to groggily open his eyes, “Did you fall asleep at all?”

“Maybe? I’m n-not sure. I might’ve passed out or s-something.”

“I’m sure you’re exhausted. After we get this barb taken care of, we can get your fluids back up and something in your stomach.”

The thought of food brought on a wave of nausea, “Ugh. No food.”

“Alright, alright, no food. But that’s probably just the venom talking. Now, let’s see about that barb.” Tony glanced down at the bowl where Peter’s foot was, quickly noting the pink tinge to the water. “It looks like the bleeding hasn’t really slowed.”

Tony lifted Peter’s foot out of the water, and was dismayed to see that the wound was both swelling and showing signs of bruising. Tony began inspecting the barb closer. “ It looks like I should be able to just pull it out,” Tony muttered under his breath, gripping the barb tight between the tweezers.

But as soon as Tony began gently tugging on the barb, Peter bolted up into a sitting position. “Hey! What are you d-doing? Stop!” Peter swatted at Tony’s hand.

“I’m just trying to get the barb out!”

“Oh… s-sorry,” Peter blushed. _Come on Peter! You’re Spider-Man! You can handle a little sting. Crap this sucks. What an awful way to spend my vacation._

“It’s fine, just try not to move. It seems to be really stuck in there.” Tony began tugging again, this time, with a bit more vigor. Peter lied back down, not wanting to see, but the steady pulling on the barb was reigniting the pain in his heel. Peter tried his best to stay still, but he must not have been doing that great of a job.

“Peter, you’ve really got to stay still,” Tony huffed, frustrated. This barb was not coming out. Not even budging! Tony tried giving a quick, strong pull with the tweezers, only to immediately stop when that caused Peter to cry out. “Okay, okay! I won’t do that again.”

Peter’s heart and breathing rates were both going back up, and Tony also noticed a tremor beginning to wrack through Peter’s frame. That would explain why the poor kid’s been stuttering so much. And it didn’t take a genius to see that Peter had a fever; there was sweat pouring down the kid’s face. Tony had been relying on his basic knowledge of stingray stings, but he was now feeling very unsure of himself.

_Am I doing any of this right? Should I call Cho? Does he need a hospital? What if his enhancements are causing this reaction? Maybe stingray venom kills spiders? Wait, why would a stingray ever even sting a spider?_

Tony’s wild thoughts were interrupted by Peter. “T-Tony… ‘m g-gonna be sick.”

As Peter began to swallow convulsively, Tony’s eyes darted around, looking for something to keep Peter from vomiting all over himself. Tony’d just grabbed the formerly discarded pitcher and brought it to Peter’s lips when Peter’s breakfast made an unwelcome second appearance.

“Damn it,” Tony cursed himself for letting Peter eat over a dozen donuts, “I’m so sorry Peter. We’re gonna figure this out.” Tony sat with Peter, rubbing his back as Peter began a spell of dry heaving.

“Easy, Pete. Just slow it down a bit. You’re fine,” Tony soothed. Peter’s heaving slowly receded into panting, as he continued spitting excess saliva into the pitcher. Peter graciously accepted a towel from Tony, wiping his mouth and nose.

“Tony... is this normal f-for a s-sting?” Peter had always trusted Tony’s judgement, but this seemed to be getting out of hand.

“I’m not sure,” Tony admitted. Tony was quick to reassure Peter when he saw his eyes widen in panic, “But, I’m officially done winging it. I’m looking it up right now. And if I can’t find answers, I’ll call Cho, okay?” Peter nodded.

Tony placed Peter’s injured foot back into the hot water, and then retrieved his phone from his bedroom. He was Googling stingray sting treatment before he’d reached the living room. He scrolled through the results until he found a website he deemed trustworthy enough.

“Look at that! We were actually on the right track there, kid.” Tony was pleased to see that, according to the website, he’d done everything correct. The fresh water rinse and hot water soak were the first recommended steps of treatment. Tony frowned when he saw that the barb was supposed to be removed with tweezers.

“We already tried that,” Tony muttered, reading on. “Here we go, it says that their barbs are serrated…” Tony trailed off, thinking. _Pulling the barb straight out’s gonna do a lot more damage and cause him more pain. Maybe if I-_

Tony’s rambling thoughts were once again interrupted by Peter. “J-Just my luck! Why’s an animal that’s a-already got a f-freakin’ barb and venom need a s-serrated barb? Overk-kill. Stupid Parker l-luck.” While the situation wasn’t funny, Peter’s exasperation did draw a chuckle out of Tony.

“I don’t know, Pete, but I think I know how to get the barb out.”

“You’re not g-gonna… c-cut it out, r-right?” Peter stuttered out, nervous.

“No, no, nothing like that. I’m only using the tweezers. Pulling it straight out obviously wasn’t working, but I think if I rock the tweezers back and forth as I pull… okay, I’ll stop talking.” Peter was starting to look a little green. “ Don’t worry about what I’m doing. Your job is to lay there and breathe. Sound easy?”

Peter nodded, but his breathing was starting to pick back up again. Tony reached for the tweezers and lifted Peter’s foot out of the hot water. As he gripped the barb, Peter sucked in a stuttered breath.

“Calm down, Peter. Give me a minute here, buddy” Tony coached, gently rocking the barb as he pulled it. Peter was panting harshly, trying his hardest not to move. The scorching pain would throb throughout his foot with every rock of the barb. Fortunately, Peter could feel the barb being extracted, but unfortunately, Peter could feel the barb being extracted.

“Bear with me, kid. We’re getting somewhere with this.” Tony could not see pink staining the barb, indicating that it was in fact being successfully extracted.

The room fell silent, excluding Peter’s occasional whimpers. While the process was significantly less painful than Tony attempting to pull the barb straight out, it took much longer. It took nearly two minutes of slow, steady rocking before the barb finally emerged. An initial gush of blood followed the barb out, but it tapered off to a weak stream.

Tony pressed a small towel into the wound, eliciting a hiss from Peter. “I’m just stopping the bleeding, Pete.” Tony glanced at his phone, trying to figure out what to do next. The website recommended cleaning the wound with some soap and water, but Tony figured there was already enough water all over his couch and floor. He decided to skip over that step in favor of keeping pressure on the wound.

Tony continued applying pressure for the next several minutes, occasionally checking to see if the bleeding had stopped. He was startled when he heard a soft snore from Peter, but relieved to see he was getting some much needed rest. Eventually, the bleeding stopped, and Tony pulled the bloody towel away. His first instinct was to tape gauze over the puncture wound, but the website informed him that the wound should be left uncovered.

Now that he’d finally gotten Peter treated, he began scrolling to see if any of Peter’s symptoms had been normal. Tony’s lingering worries were appeased when he saw that all of the symptoms Peter had exhibited were normal.

He was shocked to see that seizures, paralysis, and even death were all possible with stingray stings. While Tony doubted any species of stingray in California could cause anything like that, he was thankful that he’d gotten the barb out before any more venom could get into Peter’s system.

The last bit of information Tony read before closing the website’s tab stated that the pain from a sting normally peaked within 1-2 hours. Tony checked the time. _1:16_. Peter’d been stung nearly an hour ago, but they’d only just removed the barb. While Tony knew that the hot water had dulled the pain of the sting, he hoped that Peter’s abilities aided in him healing quicker.

Tony also hoped that all of Peter’s symptoms disappeared, and that no new ones as terrifying as seizures, paralysis, or death presented themselves.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last chapter! Thank you so much for reading this. 
> 
> I plan for the next installment of this series to be a bit shorter, and fairly lighthearted like this one, so be on the lookout for that if you liked this story. The final installment is going to be longer, and much more serious.
> 
> Thank you so much for reading this. I hope you had as much fun reading it as I had writing it.

Awareness came to Peter in an unwelcome rush. Peter’s mouth opened into a yawn as he stretched out his sore muscles. Sighing deeply, he groggily opened his eyes, looking around for whatever had roused him from his slumber. His quick view of the darkening living room let Peter know that the sun was setting. _Yikes. How long was I out?_ His eyes fell on Tony, who was sound asleep, leaning in a seated position against the couch. _That’s going to absolutely kill his back._

Peter craned his neck around, trying to identify what had woken him up, but the movement caused an awful ache to flare up in his neck. Peter’s surprised, pained gasp was enough to have Tony awake in an instant.

“Peter? What's going on?” As tired as Tony was, any signs of pain from Peter were sure to wake him up.

“I don’t know. I just felt this pain when I turned my head,” Peter rubbed at his sore neck.

“Well, it sounds like the tremors have worn off.” Tony shuffled over to Peter. “Let me see,” Tony replaced Peter’s hands with his own, and began running his fingers along Peter’s neck. His suspicions were confirmed when he reached what felt like knots, causing Peter to grimace.

“It looks like your lymph nodes are all swelled up, kiddo.”

“Is that bad?” Peter worriedly asked.

“I don’t think so. I mean, the lymphatic system’s function is to remove excess fluids and produce immune cells. It’s probably working hard to get rid of any remaining venom. How are you feeling, otherwise?”

“Fine, I guess. I’ll take a pain in the neck over that sting any day. I’m still not sure what woke me up though.” Peter’s stomach took its cue to growl obnoxiously. Peter’s cheeks flushed.

“I’m guessing that your hunger woke you up. You haven’t had anything to drink since this morning, and it’s just now” Tony glanced at his phone, “8:22. Does food sound good to you? I know you were feeling pretty nauseous there. Has that cleared up at all?”

Peter shrugged. “I think so. I mean the idea of food doesn’t have me turning green.”

“Well let’s get you something to eat,” Tony walked into the kitchen, the box of “Randy’s Donuts” catching his attention. “How about some donuts?”

Peter groaned, remembering the sight and smell of his half-digested breakfast. “That _does_ have me feeling nauseous, Mr. Stark.”

Tony chuckled. “Okay, so that’s a pass on donuts.” Tony peeked into the fridge. “How about some leftover pizza? I know it’s no chicken noodle soup, but it’s better than nothing.”

“That actually does sound delicious,” Peter was pleasantly surprised that his appetite had returned so quickly.

Tony returned to the couch, balancing two plates of pizza in one hand, while extending his other, containing a bottle of Glacier Cherry Gatorade, to Peter. “Take a couple sips of that first, and then you can nibble on some pizza. If you can keep that down and you’re still hungry or thirsty, you can have more.”

Peter obediently sipped on the Gatorade, only to get his pizza quicker. Hot from the oven or cold from the fridge, pizza was always tasty! The two fell into silence as they both ate, only for it to be broken by Peter’s…

“Did you hold on to the barb after you got it out?”

The question caught Tony off guard; he’d expected Peter would never want to see the barb again. “Uh, yeah. I did.” Tony reached into his pocket, pulling out the barb and showing it to Peter.

“Holy cow, Mr. Stark! That _thing_ was in my _heel_?” Peter was shocked. The barb looked to be around an inch and a half in length.

“Well, not the entire thing, but yeah, most of it was in your heel. Thank God it was angled into the fleshy part of your foot, and didn’t go straight into the bone. That would’ve taken more than just a pair of tweezers to remove.” Tony handed the barb off to Peter, who studied it for another several moments, only to ask a second question that caught Tony off guard.

“Do you think the stingray’s okay? I hope it’s okay.”

“You’re worried about the _stingray_ , kid? Worry about yourself. That stingray’s gonna be fine. They’re not like bees or anything. And speaking of worrying about yourself, let’s take a look at that wound.” Tony placed his pizza plate on the ground, now missing his surfboard coffee table, and knelt down at Peter’s feet.

Just at an initial glance, Tony could see that Peter’s wound was already healing nicely. Both the swelling and discoloration seemed to be fading, and what was once a large puncture wound, now looked to only be the size of a pinprick. “It looks good, kiddo. Does it hurt at all anymore?”

“Nope. And I feel great after finally getting some food and fluids in me. Now can I please have some more Hawaiian pizza, Mr. Stark?”

“I guess I did promise you more.” Tony was thrilled that Peter was making a quick, full recovery. While Peter’s reaction had been worse than Tony would have expected, it seemed that his accelerated healing was taking care of the venom.

“Hey, Mr. Stark, can we watch another movie?”

“Sure, kid. Whatever you want to do.”

“Sweet! But _I’m_ picking it this time. No _Jaws 2_ or anything like that” Peter stated.

“Well, what do you suggest we watch?”

“You worry about getting me some more pizza, Mr. Stark. I’ll worry about getting the movie set up.” Peter grabbed the remote, already searching for the movie he wanted to watch in Tony’s massive digital library.

Tony brought back the remaining box of leftover pizza, as well as another bottle of Gatorade for Peter. As Tony lowered himself onto the couch, he saw the telltale animated ocean and pair of clownfish. “Really, Pete? _Finding Nemo_?”

“What? It’s the best Pixar film, Mr. Stark.”

“Yeah, well, let’s just say I’m not the biggest fan of movies where the plot involves a father looking for his kidnapped son.” Tony crossed his arms, hoping Peter wouldn’t notice why that would bother him so much.

Peter knew _exactly_ why this movie bothered Tony. “You know his dad finds him at the end.”

“Well thanks for the spoiler alert, Pete! Gosh!”

Peter laughed, and the two settled in to watch the movie. Not far in, Peter began excitedly yelling at Tony, “Hey, look! I forgot about Mr. Ray! I can’t believe I got stung by Mr. Ray!”

Exasperated, but with good humor, Tony informed Peter that it was “highly unlikely for that species of stingray to be in California.”

“When did you become an expert on stingrays?”

“This afternoon, you know, after you got stung. The stingray that got you was probably just a typical, Round Stingray. They’re much more common than the Spotted Eagle Ray, or I’m sorry, ‘Mr. Ray’.”

Peter pouted, “Mr. Stark, you’re no fun. I’m telling Ned and MJ that it was Mr. Ray that stung me.”

“Uh huh, and what about your Aunt May?”

Peter grimaced, knowing how much that would freak her out, “I don’t think I’ll tell her about _this_ part of our vacation. She’d probably never let me go on vacation with you again.”

Tony looked at Peter expectantly.

It took Peter a moment, but eventually, he responded with an indignant “Hey! You love having me around, Mr. Stark.”

Tony slumped against the couch, laughing. “I’m just teasing you, kid. Yeah, go ahead and leave this part out from May… or don’t. She’s your aunt, and since you're fine now, it’s your call whether you tell her or not.”

The pair fell back into silence, enjoying the film. As they watched, they added in their own silly commentary, including a jab from Tony stating how Peter’s earlier hungry, growling stomach sounded just like Dory’s whale impressions. By the time the film was over, Peter could hardly keep his eyes open. Though he felt much better, he couldn’t wait to sleep off any remaining ray venom in his king sized bed.

Tony handed Peter another Gatorade, and helped him limp to his room. Even though the wound was nearly fully healed, Peter was still hesitant to put too much weight on it. The two parted ways, and both of them were asleep before their heads hit their pillows.

…

Peter found himself wide awake right as the sun rose. While he’d expected to sleep longer, he had basically taken a seven hour, venom induced nap the previous day. With that thought in mind, Peter pulled the covers back to inspect his heel. He was thrilled to see that his healing had taken care of the remaining swelling, bruising, and puncture wound. He was also glad to note that his neck was no longer stiff or sore.

Peter swung his legs over the side of the bed, and tested his weight before standing up. He began hesitantly walking towards the bathroom, but gained speed when he realized that his foot felt completely back to normal.

Since he’d woken at dawn, he figured this was a good morning to finally test out his jacuzzi. Sure enough, the hot water and jets were heaven on his sore muscles, and he soaked in the tub for nearly a half hour. After toweling off and brushing his teeth, Peter headed out to the kitchen.

He was not surprised to see Tony already seated at the breakfast bar, holding a cup of black coffee with one hand, and scrolling through emails on his phone with the other. Upon hearing Peter approach, he shut off his phone, took one final sip of coffee, and turned towards Peter.

“Good morning. I’m shocked you’re up so early, given that it was nearly ten o’clock before you rolled out of bed yesterday. Are you feeling back to normal?” Tony’s gaze wandered down to Peter’s foot.

“Yup. I’m ready to get this vacation back on track.”

“Well, great. I had a couple ideas. I thought we could get breakfast first. There’s a great café not too far from here. And then, I thought we could maybe set up a tour at Pepperdine University. I’m not sure if it’s really a school you’re interested in, but it’s always good to tour colleges to see if-”

“I want to go swimming again!”

Tony was silent for a minute. “Peter, are you sure? I’m not sure if that’s really a good idea.”

“I know, but I _really_ want to Mr. Stark. And yeah, I’d love to visit that café or Pepperdine, and we definitely can, but I think I need to get back in the ocean again first.”

“Why so soon? Maybe we should be staying away from the water for the rest of our vacation.”

“No, Mr. Stark! We’re not gonna just ignore the ocean outside our door for the next several days. Just, please? I want to get right back in before I build up any sort of fear of the ocean. I’m already claustrophobic; I don’t want to add aquaphobia to the roster.”

While Tony was nervous, he could see Peter’s point. “So, you just want to get back in the saddle, is that it?”

“Yeah, that’s what I’m saying.” Peter was relieved that he’d won Tony over so quickly.

“Well, I trust that you know what you need. I guess go change into your swimming trunks then. But bring a set of clothes with you. I don’t want you hanging out at the beach too long on an empty stomach. We’ll swing by the café or somewhere after your little therapeutic experiment.”

Peter was already running back down the hallway to his room, searching for his swimming trunks. He grabbed a set of jeans and a science pun t-shirt to change into as well. By the time he was ready, Tony was standing at the door with sunscreen in his hand, dressed casually.

“Are you not getting in?” Peter asked, applying the sunscreen.

“Nah, I’m just going to supervise. Keep a lookout for any more rays or giant sharks.”

Peter rolled his eyes, and then the two journeyed back down to the beach. Peter approached the water, just standing in the wet sand of the shore. It’s not that Peter was scared or anything, but he was feeling a bit nervous. Tony was content with silently allowing Peter to take his time. He didn’t want to pressure Peter or make him feel bad about himself.

Peter began wading out into the shallow water, shuffling his feet to alert any rays of his presence. Peter gained confidence and was soon back to diving into waves and swimming with the currents.

Peter was enjoying himself for around a half hour before he heard Tony. “C’mon, Peter! Let’s go get some breakfast.”

Tony met Peter with a towel as he was wading out of the water. “I’m so proud of you Peter.”

Peter blushed. “It’s no big deal. I wasn’t that scared or anything. I just, you know, wanted to get back out there before I _actually_ got scared.”

“Don’t sell yourself short, kid. Facing any sort of fear is a big deal. Now, why don’t we go get something to eat?” Tony wrapped his arm around Peter’s shoulder.

Peter was proud of himself for getting back in the ocean right after being harmed by one of its inhabitants. _Maybe I can even get over my claustrophobia one day._

As they headed farther away from the shore, something caught Peter’s eye. He darted away from Tony to inspect it.

“What’d you see, kid?”

Peter triumphantly raised a sizeable, ivory sand dollar into the air. “The perfect gift for Pepper.”

The remainder of their vacation went on without a hitch. It was the perfect reward for all of Peter’s hard work in his academics, as well as a great way to unwind after a stressful school year. They explored all kinds of parks, beaches, and eateries. Peter didn’t want to leave, but he was looking forward to seeing May and his friends again. On the jet ride back home, Peter popped a very important question:

“So, where are we going next year, Mr. Stark?”

“You mean, _if_ you can keep your grades up?”

Peter scoffed, “C’mon, Mr. Stark. You _know_ I’ll get straight A’s.”

“Now, now. Don’t get cocky. I was thinking somewhere lacking any venomous, poisonous, or dangerous animals.”

“...How about Australia?”


End file.
